Liberal groups cheer Supreme Court ruling

Liberal groups celebrated the U.S. Supreme Court’s decision to uphold the Affordable Care Act today. While some reactions never left the realm of typical partisan name-calling, others looked beyond politics to declare the decision a victory — not just for Democrats or President Obama, but for the millions of uninsured Americans who will now be able to afford care.

Liberal leaders expressed a renewed sense of optimism that historically disenfranchised groups would benefit from the law. Steven R. Shapiro, legal director for the American Civil Liberties Union, said the decision “is especially welcome for disadvantaged minorities, who are more likely to be uninsured, and for women, who are more likely to suffer gaps and discrimination in their health care coverage.”

Cecile Richards (Official photo)

Cecile Richards, president of Planned Parenthood Federation of America, said the Supreme Court’s decision to uphold the Affordable Care Act will have a “profound and concrete impact” on millions of people’s lives and ease the financial burden on women across the country.

Richards, the daughter of former Texas Gov. Ann Richards, explained that the law will provide access to birth control and cancer screenings without co-pays, guaranteed direct access to OB/GYN providers without referrals, and an end to discriminatory practices against women, such as charging women higher premiums and denying coverage for pre-existing conditions.

“Today, we are closer than ever to realizing the promise of health care for all. This is a victory for the American people,” said Richards.

Nancy Keenan, president of NARAL Pro-Choice America, called the landmark healthcare reform law “the greatest advancement for women’s health in a generation” and “a tremendous victory for American women.”

Keenan also called the ruling a victory over former Gov. Mitt Romney (R-Mass.) and other anti-choice politicians who want to take away coverage for maternity care and contraception.

“Gov. Romney and his anti-choice allies have fought tooth and nail to make it harder for women to get the health care they need,” Keenan said. “Attacking the healthcare law in court was only one front in these politicians’ War on Women. Gov. Romney wants to allow insurance companies to continue to charge women more money for health-care services than men. He also supports allowing insurers and corporations to deny women birth-control coverage. The Supreme Court’s decision is further evidence that these politicians are deeply out of touch with Americans’ values and priorities.”

Keenan noted that the achievements of the health-care law would not have been possible without President Obama’s leadership. “We stand with the millions of American women and families who will finally get access to quality, affordable health care thanks to this law. We need to keep President Obama in office to make sure that all of the benefits of the Affordable Care Act are implemented, not rolled back by anti-choice politicians.”

“We are both delighted and relieved that the Supreme Court recognized, in its political diversity, that the provisions in the ACA are constitutional and should fully be implemented,” said Hilary Shelton, Senior Vice President for Advocacy and Policy for the NAACP. He called the law a “very amazing and major step forward for justice – a step forward for coverage for all, regardless of race, gender, or ethnicity.”

Service Employees International Union President Mary Kay Henry issued a statement praising the president and the members of Congress responsible for the law’s passage. “There are more than 100 million Americans of all political parties, ages, incomes and occupations that are benefiting from the Affordable Care Act,” Hery said.

However, the SEIU President also criticized conservative lawmakers, saying, “For more than two years, Republicans like Speaker Boehner, Congressman Paul Ryan and Mitt Romney have put their political careers ahead of working Americans struggling to afford and keep their healthcare. Insurance companies and corporate insiders have spent millions to take away the benefits of the law. Today, the Supreme Court rejected their cynical approach and working people won a resounding victory.”

Ron Pollack, Executive Director of Families USA, called the ruling “a clear, unambiguous, and complete victory for long-overdue health care reform.” He continued, “It has taken close to a century to enact meaningful health reform. Now that the Supreme Court has upheld the law, it will become a living reality for all Americans very soon.”

“Obamacare is here to stay,” said Ethan Rome, executive director of Health Care for America Now, which ran a $53 million grassroots and media campaign to pass the Affordable Care Act. “The days of health insurance company price-gouging and denials of care are over. The court has spoken, and the constitutional debate is done. This ruling tells every anti-Obamacare Republican governor it’s time to move forward with full implementation and end the political nonsense.”

But Rome, who was the only organization leader to who expressed anything less than utter jubilation at the decision, added, “We are disappointed that the decision weakens the federal government’s power to enforce the Medicaid expansion. Under the court’s ruling, some states may choose to exclude the lowest-income uninsured adults from their Medicaid programs. We will organize at the grassroots level in state capitals to make sure this does not happen. Fortunately, other provisions of the law will help this population get the care they need.”

He went on to chastise both Republicans and the Supreme Court, saying, “Now that the Republican-dominated corporate court has upheld this law, it’s appalling that the GOP has already said it wants to continue this debate in Congress and take away your health care by repealing the law. The Republicans have already pledged to continue their relentless campaign to undermine the health care security of America’s families. They want to end Medicare as we know it, dismantle Medicaid and repeal Obamacare, including the ban on discriminating against people with pre-existing conditions.”

Political Action Executive Director for MoveOn.orgJustin Ruben expressed a similar sentiment, saying,
“The fact that the Affordable Care Act was ever in jeopardy shows how politicized this court has become. All too often, this 1% Court has legislated from the bench on behalf of corporations and the wealthy instead of acting as fair arbiters of the law.”